I am in the middle of an amazing Resistance Writing Workshop. This week we focused on resistance through fiction. One of our exercises was to take life as it is and reimagine it as it should be. This short story came to me based on a shirt my 6 year old wore to the march for science earlier this year. It reads “save the earth. It’s the only planet with pizza.” So without further ado, my first dabble into fiction in a very long time!

Earth’s Most Delicious Hero

Pizza. Everybody likes pizza. There’s a topping for every tastebud. There are city rivalries based on pizza. Rats carry pieces around New York. There are different sizes, shapes, and depths. People are passionate about their pizza preferences. Chicagoans scoff when they see “Chicago Style Pizza!” anywhere outside of Chicago. There is no way they get that right, no way! Pizza is a simple yet serious part of our collective ethos. Funny thing though, Earth is the only planet with pizza. You can’t find a thin crispy crust cheese slice on any other planet, that we know about.

Pizza is what saved this planet. The force that finally led world leaders to collectively sigh and say, “ok! We have to do something about climate change, or this is it. We are done for! Finished, gone, extinct!” Not Cat 5 hurricanes, or flooding islands, or unbearably hot Septembers, or ice shelves falling off. No, we humans live through our bellies. And it turns out, the way to a man’s brain (not heart, we had that one wrong) is through his belly.

Pizza. That perfectly warm golden tangy delight, too delectable to ever give up, was the Earth’s champion. The reason we all work harder to reduce our impact and waste. The reason our air is cleaner and our oceans are cooler. And come to think of it, why everyone smiles more. Who can be mad when every single Friday is International Pizza Night? Obviously started to commemorate our shared, global, hero. You don’t have to Go Green. You can just Go Cheesy (but please, skip the anchovies).

Last night was build your own pizza and grill it night. We use Flatouts for our crusts because they are thin and small enough for a little personal pizza. We love doing this because everyone gets to eat exactly what they want. I am not one to eat heavy pizza very often. So, I especially love this because I can keep my toppings fresh and my cheese to a minimum.

Arugula Balsamic Tomato Pizza

1 Flatout pizza crust

Olive oil for brushing

1 vine ripe tomato

5 small balls fresh mozzarella, cut in half

1 Tbsp Fig Balsamic Vinegar (or any balsamic vinegar of your liking)

1/2 lemon, juiced

Handful of baby arugula, chopped

Follow the instructions on your flatout pizza crust. I grilled the crust, plain, for 1 minute. Seriously, 1 minute. Then I added my toppings. I brushed with olive oil. Laid the sliced tomatoes on the crust. Added the 10 halves of mozzarella. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the whole pizza. I placed mine on a baking pan because my grill gets very hot very fast. This keeps the crust from getting too burnt. While allowing the cheese to melt. The vinegar seems to soak through a touch, so watch the pizza and every few seconds use a spatula to lift under the crust.

Once the cheese is a bit melted and the tomatoes have softened (3-4 minutes) remove from grill and add the arugula. Drizzle the lemon juice over the whole thing. Enjoy!